The Commonwealth of Kentucky is known as the
"Bluegrass State", based on the fact that
bluegrass is present in many of the lawns and pastures
throughout the state.
Kentucky’s 90 thousand miles (140 thousand km) of streams provides one
of the most expansive and complex stream systems in the U.S.
It is the only state to be bordered on 3 sides by rivers.
There is the Mississippi River to the west,
the Ohio River to the north,
and the Big Sandy River and Tug Fork to the east.
The official borders are based on the courses of the
rivers as they existed at the time
Kentucky originally became a state.
In several places, the border does not follow the
present river courses.
Its major internal rivers include the Kentucky River,
Tennessee River, Cumberland River, Green River, and Licking River.
Though it is home to only 3 major natural lakes,
the state has many artificial lakes.
Kentucky has both the largest artificial lake east of the
Mississippi in water volume (Lake Cumberland) and
surface area (Kentucky Lake).
West Virginia lies to the east,
Virginia to the southeast,
Tennessee to the south,
Missouri to the west,
Illinois and
Indiana to the northwest, and
Ohio to the north and northeast.
Archaeologists classify Kentucky's prehistoric past
into 6 cultures which spanned from 13000BC to 1650AD.
These cultures were the Paleo~Indian culture;
the Archaic culture; the Woodland culture;
the Adena culture; the Mississippian culture and the
Fort Ancient culture.
From about 1650 until the arrival of the first European settlers,
Shawnee tribes from north of the Ohio River and the Cherokee
and Chickasaw tribes from south of the Cumberland River competed
for control of the "Great Meadow."
The most likely origin of Kentucky's name is from an
Iroquoian word for "meadow" or "prairie".
Much of what is now Kentucky was
purchased from Native Americans in the treaties of
Fort Stanwix (1768) and Sycamore Shoals (1775).
Formerly a part of Virginia, in 1792
Kentucky was made a separate
state and joined the Union as the 15th state.
It is the only state to
have a non~contiguous part exist as an exclave surrounded by
other states.
When Civil War erupted in 1861,
Kentucky was torn apart. Officially a neutral state,
conflicting loyalties turned brother against brother.
Kentucky supplied approximately 10 thousand troops to the North
and 40 thousand troops to the South.
Ironically, Kentucky was the
birthplace of the Union president,
Abraham Lincoln, and the Confederate president,
Jefferson Davis.
The 2 men were born in log cabins within 1 year and
100 miles of each other.
Today, Kentucky has an estimated
population of over 4 million people.
It is also home to the highest per capita number of deer and turkey
in the United States and
the world's longest cave system.
WEATHER
Kentucky experiences all 4 seasons,
usually with striking variations in the severity of summer and
winter from year to year.
It is not rare to see big changes in temperature and weather
conditions within the same day.
Kentucky has a climate that can best be described as
humid subtropical.
All monthly average high temperatures are above freezing.
Monthly average temperatures in Kentucky range from a summer
daytime high of 87 º F (30.9 º C) to a winter low of 23 º F (-4.9 º C).
The average precipitation is 46 inches (116.84 cm) per year.
ECONOMY
The Kentucky Chamber of Commerce
represents more than 13 thousand business
leaders and
customers who share a strong interest in enhancing
and protecting the state's economic future.
It is a powerful grassroots network consisting of
tens of thousands of business professionals and
local chambers across the state,
trade organizations and their members.
Members of the Chamber employ more than
400 thousand Kentucky workers...
nearly 25% of the
state's private workforce.
After the Civil War, Kentucky's
economy underwent dramatic changes.
As the hemp industry declined, the development of burley
tobacco contributed to a tremendous increase in tobacco production.
The U.S. Treasury Gold Vault was established at Fort Knox in 1936.
During World War II, Kentucky began to shift from an agricultural
to an industrial economy, but it was not until 1970 that the state
had more urban than rural dwellers.
Much of rural Kentucky has maintained
a farm~based economy.
Agricultural output consists mainly of
horses, goats, cattle, tobacco, dairy products, hogs, soybeans, and corn.
Industrial activity includes
bourbon distilleries, bluegrass music, transportation equipment,
chemical products, electric equipment, machinery, food processing,
tobacco products, coal, and tourism.
The world famous Louisville Slugger baseball bat is made in
Louisville, Kentucky.
Kentucky ranks 4th in the
United States for the number of automobiles and
trucks assembled.
Northeast Kentucky is an important transportation,
manufacturing, and medical center.
Iron and petroleum production, as well as the transport of coal
by rail and barge, have historically been solid pillars of the
region's economy.
Bounded by the 2 largest rivers in North America,
water transportation has always played a major role in
Kentucky's economy.
Most barge traffic on Kentucky
waterways consists of coal
that is shipped from both the Eastern and Western Coalfields,
about half of which is used locally to power many power plants
located directly off the
Ohio River, with the rest being exported to other countries,
most notably Japan.
The Eastern Kentucky Coal Fields
are recognized as being among the most productive in the country.
Tourism has developed into a major industry,
aided by an impressive state park system and new highways
across the state.
From the time the region was settled, the fields of the
Bluegrass region were noted for producing superior
race horses.
Since the late 18th century, the area immediately outside
Lexington has been a major center
for breeding Thoroughbred racing horses, due to the high
calcium content in the soil.
SCHOOLS
Kentucky maintains 8 public
colleges and universities.
The 2 major research institutions are the
University of Kentucky
and the University of Louisville.
From its very
establishment in 1855, Berea College,
located on the southern edge of the
Bluegrass below the Cumberland Plateau,
was the first co~educational college in the South to admit both
black and white students.
The Kentucky Department of Education
is a service agency of the Commonwealth of Kentucky.
The department serves as the state liaison for federal education
requirements and funding opportunities,
and also provides resources and guidance to
public schools and districts as they implement the state's
K~12 education requirements.
For more details please contact the
Kentucky Department of Education.
HOSPITALITY
There are so many wonderful attractions throughout
Kentucky
it is a place you will want to visit often.
Discover the beauty, excitement and hospitality that are
the distinctive trademarks of a great state.
If you love the outdoors, come experience the
Unbridled Adventure of Kentucky.
With much of the country's rural areas being taken over by
suburban sprawl, it is refreshing to find such a large part of
Kentucky still in its natural state.
A wealth of outdoor activities, a diverse landscape,
numerous waterways and a variety of
wildlife make for an unbelievable getaway no outdoor
enthusiast can resist.
For more details please contact
Kentucky State Tourism.
NEWS
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